Seeking advice

[SerotoninStorm]

Hello, and thanks for taking the time to read my post. I'm a 25-year old who graduated from Univ. of MD College Park in '06 with a dual B.S. in Zoology and Psychology. I was planning to become a behavioral researcher and worked in an animal behavior lab for a year after I graduated college, but I became interested in healthcare after my father died suddenly from a MRSA infection. I switched to working in a clinical NeuroPsychiatry lab at Johns Hopkins SOM and have been here for over a year, recruiting out- and inpatient drug users for brain imaging and EEG studies on neurotoxicity; my main goal besides recruiting them has been to administer psychological and neuropsychological test batteries. I've really enjoyed it and was planning to apply to PhD programs in clinical psychology, but I've started to think that I would be really limiting myself to go into clinical psych instead of medicine. Although I admire the field of clinical psychology, I've seen how often clinical psychologists must defer to physicians in clinical and research situations and how much more flexible and knowledgeable a well-trained physician can be in many of those situations (I am not slamming psychologists at all, these are just my honest observations). I'm very interested in neurology and psychiatry and conducting clinical research in those fields, and it seems that medical training is by far offers the most comprehensive education one could hope to receive in terms of both the basic and clinical science of those fields, and it seems to me from my experiences at Hopkins that physicians without PhDs don't have much difficulty in becoming involved with clinical research at all.

So, now I'm seriously thinking about medical school with the full approval my supervisors (who are fairly well-known Profs of Psychiatry and Neurology at Hopkins). My friend gave me an old Kaplan review book and I started on the O-chem section and I nearly had a panic attack, as I realized how completely little of this material I remember and that I wasn't particularly good at it in the first place. So I guess my question is, before I put myself through the pain of trying to wrestle with the MCAT and the admissions process, do I even have a chance at all? I was a decent student in school and always did well in Biology, but my GenChem I/II grades were B/C and my OchemI/II grades were C/B. I got an A in physics I+II, A in almost all Psych courses, about an even A/B split in Bio. I had to retake basic Algebra twice (early in my college career, before I became a bio major and was really bad at math) but finally got an A in pre-cal and B's in Calc I and Calc II. Overall my GPA was a 3.48 and about a 3.3 in sciences. I took four post-bacc. courses in Psychology since then and got all A's but that's it so far. I've presented one poster at a research symposium here at Hopkins but have no pubs yet (though my supervisors have promised that I will probably be on a few papers by this time next year). I'm volunteering as a nurse's assistant at the Hopkins Hospital but I just started.

So do you knowledgeable sorts you think someone with my kind of weird mix of weaknesses and strengths and experiences would make a good medical student? I really don't want to re-take my basic sciences (although I took several of them over 5 years ago) and I don't know that I'll be able to ace the MCAT regardless of how hard I try. I have come to know a number of physicians and they are all quite supportive, and I admire what they do and think with the training I could be capable of performing quite well as a doctor, but the admissions hump seems completely insurmountable. If you have any insights or constructive criticism to offer, I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks for your time.

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[danny317]

if you really want it, then go for it. its better to give it a shot and fail than to always wonder.

however, i think it would be best to retake your science courses bc it may have been a few yrs since youve seen the material. dont worry about how long this may take you. slow and steady wins the race.

(sorry for all the cliches)

good luck!

 

[camaras2480]

Not to be rude, but avoid such long posts. That's part of the reason why you have only had one response in a week. It is sort of tedious for us to read, when we can go through 5 other posts in the same time.

Your numbers from undergrad are reasonable. You should be retaking any basic science course that is a C+ or lower. If there are any. Also, it seems you are not thrilled about the MCAT. Therefore, you may consider a Special Masters Program. They are usually one year, and they allow you to take medical school courses with the medical students. Fair warning, these programs are high risk, high reward.

If you are able to hold a 3.5 minimum in an SMP, then with a lower end MCAT like 30, you have a legit shot at allopathic schools in the US.

 

[KG216]

First bit of advice...don't think so pessimistically. Sure the process is quite daunting, but it can be done! The process from start to finish can truly weed out people who aren't committed and passionate enough to go through it all. It makes you a stronger and wiser person to stick with it if that is your goal.

I think you have a great story and interesting experiences that can make you stand out in the process. I'd say to seriously consider retaking the courses you had lower scores in- trust me, I know how crappy that must sound to hear that, but if you TRULY want this, that on't deter you. It is always good to bump your GPA up, especially with the BCPM classes. Most schools will have higher cGPA and sGPA averages, but again with averages always comes accepted students who got in having lower averages. Many factors can play into how your GPA will affect your chances.

What about any other EC's? I know you have research, and clinical research is often very valued at many schools. How about shadowing? Volunteer work? Those are all GREAT ways to test your desire to practice medicine. You may shadow and just be completely turned off by some aspect, or completely love it. Nonetheless, these are important aspects for your application so if you have a bunch of these done or in the process, you are on the right track.

I think the first step is to decide whether you are going to let the academic portion of the process weigh you down. Don't let the fact that reviewing old material makes you feel overwhelmed, that will happen. I am starting my second year of grad school and am applying for the 2010 entering class. I am retaking the MCAT in a few weeks and when I began to study for it again over this school year I felt the same way. Trust me, with a good prep course (or even a lot of commitment and dedication to review books and tests) the material WILL come back and it won't be so overwhelming after you give it some time. Being a little older and more experienced you may find that studying will be more in depth, efficient and productive.

I would get rid of the midset about "acing" the MCAT. I don't know anyone who has "aced" it, but they definitely have all worked hard and gotten scores which will made them competitive (30 and up).

It's kind of hard to say what your chances are. It depends on a lot of factors. I'd say the best way to be really competitive and succeed would be to retake at least a few of those classes so that you help raise your GPA and then study hard to take the MCAT . That is a personal decision you have to make. You can always try to just take the MCAT and take your chances with your grades the way they are- you can get a better feel for the types of applicants that gotten acceptances by going to www.mdapplicants.com . You can search people based on GPA or MCAT scores, or you can even go to individual schools and see the stats on the people who were accepted, just interviewed, just received a secondary and so on. I'm sure there have been people who have gotten accepted with similar GPA values, and since you don't have an MCAT score its hard to comment.

Hope my advice was helpful and not too confusing. It's hard to give definite answers without an MCAT score to look at- regadless, if you want it- it can definitely happen! Good luck!

 

[camaras2480]

First bit of advice...don't think so pessimistically. Sure the process is quite daunting, but it can be done! The process from start to finish can truly weed out people who aren't committed and passionate enough to go through it all. It makes you a stronger and wiser person to stick with it if that is your goal.

I think you have a great story and interesting experiences that can make you stand out in the process. I'd say to seriously consider retaking the courses you had lower scores in- trust me, I know how crappy that must sound to hear that, but if you TRULY want this, that on't deter you. It is always good to bump your GPA up, especially with the BCPM classes. Most schools will have higher cGPA and sGPA averages, but again with averages always comes accepted students who got in having lower averages. Many factors can play into how your GPA will affect your chances.

What about any other EC's? I know you have research, and clinical research is often very valued at many schools. How about shadowing? Volunteer work? Those are all GREAT ways to test your desire to practice medicine. You may shadow and just be completely turned off by some aspect, or completely love it. Nonetheless, these are important aspects for your application so if you have a bunch of these done or in the process, you are on the right track.

I think the first step is to decide whether you are going to let the academic portion of the process weigh you down. Don't let the fact that reviewing old material makes you feel overwhelmed, that will happen. I am starting my second year of grad school and am applying for the 2010 entering class. I am retaking the MCAT in a few weeks and when I began to study for it again over this school year I felt the same way. Trust me, with a good prep course (or even a lot of commitment and dedication to review books and tests) the material WILL come back and it won't be so overwhelming after you give it some time. Being a little older and more experienced you may find that studying will be more in depth, efficient and productive.

I would get rid of the midset about "acing" the MCAT. I don't know anyone who has "aced" it, but they definitely have all worked hard and gotten scores which will made them competitive (30 and up).

It's kind of hard to say what your chances are. It depends on a lot of factors. I'd say the best way to be really competitive and succeed would be to retake at least a few of those classes so that you help raise your GPA and then study hard to take the MCAT . That is a personal decision you have to make. You can always try to just take the MCAT and take your chances with your grades the way they are- you can get a better feel for the types of applicants that gotten acceptances by going to www.mdapplicants.com . You can search people based on GPA or MCAT scores, or you can even go to individual schools and see the stats on the people who were accepted, just interviewed, just received a secondary and so on. I'm sure there have been people who have gotten accepted with similar GPA values, and since you don't have an MCAT score its hard to comment.

Hope my advice was helpful and not too confusing. It's hard to give definite answers without an MCAT score to look at- regadless, if you want it- it can definitely happen! Good luck!

This is intense; I didn't actually read all of it. I just quoted it cuz I saw the MDapps website as a link. Just want to point out that MDapps is a good source, but skewed for people with higher numbers. Naturally, people with lower end numbers won't always post their MDapps. Basically, do not be discouraged by the website. Some people think its funny to make a 4.0/40 profile just for kicks.

 

[KG216]

Very true camaras2480. Its nice to look at profiles where people kept consistent records as to dates where they were verified, received secondaries, interviewed, found out results, etc. I believe there is a thread on here for that as well. Good sources of info here and there, enjoy!